


Love in Bloom

by SilentHero



Category: Supergirl (TV 2015)
Genre: Angst with a Happy Ending, F/F, Hanahaki Disease, Hurt/Comfort, Lena Luthor Knows Kara Danvers Is Supergirl, lena needs a hug, this is tough guys
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-01-13
Updated: 2020-01-13
Packaged: 2021-02-27 15:26:52
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,173
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22239352
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SilentHero/pseuds/SilentHero
Summary: So, when the first innocently fragile petal fell past her lips into the palm of her hand, a sad smile and a trash bin were the only things to greet it.ORLena has Hanahaki Disease but hides it from Kara until Lena has to risk her life to save her.
Relationships: Kara Danvers/Lena Luthor
Comments: 10
Kudos: 148





	Love in Bloom

She was never one for pity. Luthors were taught to never show weakness, but what weakness really meant was humanity. She learned how to wear armor to protect her _oh so very_ human heart, and paid extra attention to repair any chinks in it from lost loves that promised to warm her cold world. This is how she survived, if she never let anyone in, then she never could be burned by a love too bright ever again.

So, when the first innocently fragile petal fell past her lips into the palm of her hand, a sad smile and a trash bin were the only things to greet it.

It was somehow ironic that the part of herself that she shielded from the world would be her undoing. The flicker of humanity her broken but still beating heart held was the first unrepairable chink in her armor that meant certain demise for Lena.

For days, no one knew, or cared enough to realize. _Well, that’s not entirely true. There is one person that cares. But she is the only person who can never know._

As time marched on, red rose petals were simply tossed in the trash or flushed down the toilet whenever they felt the need to remind Lena of her lovesick heart and dying lungs. She knew what Hanahaki meant, she knew just who her stupid heart betrayed her for, and she knew that she was doomed from the first petal.

Of course she had to cough up red roses. The flower that stood for true, everlasting love; a love that could survive even death. A love that would spell out death for Lena.

Lena knew the steel around her heart could only protect her for so long, before the Girl of Steel pried her way in. Loving Kara was the only thing Lena wished for, even when she knew the consequences of one sided love.

Soon, the petals that poised only a minor inconvenience were more persistent. It seemed that she had to excuse herself from every board meeting and cut every conference call short to flee to the safety of privacy and cough out her love for Kara.

Whole roses started squeezing their way through Lena’s trachea after her latest encounter with the sunny blonde. Bent over the trashcan, knuckles pale and straining through the pain, the roses looked beautiful. 

_They’d make a gorgeous bouquet for Kara, if only I’d found them under different circumstances._ Another rose forced itself through her lips.

The petals themselves were easy enough to clear from her windpipe, it was the thorns that began to accompany the flowers that caused problems. They made almost every breath agony as sharp ends poked and prodded her lungs.

That night, Lena snapped her eyes open and sat up from her slumber brimming with dreams of Kara. Both hands shot to cover her mouth as she hacked until tears were streaming down her face and her throat burned. Sighing, she removed her hands, sending petals fluttering in front of her, but something was wrong- these petals felt different.

Bringing her trembling fingers closer to her face, Lena could see that the red not only painted the petals, but her hands. _Blood, the red roses are coated in blood._

This time, Lena couldn’t stop the whimper that pushed itself through her blood covered lips. She knew that she’d never get to live out a long, happy life because of her last name, but it never once crossed Lena’s mind that her life would be cut so short, by flowers growing in her lungs, no less.

The tears that slid down her cheeks were no longer from the pain of the flowers, but the pain of a glimpse of her imminent death. In the darkness of night, Lena laid surrounded by blood red roses and cried herself to exhaustion.

Lena was a certified genius, she knew that she didn’t have much time left. She also knew that spending time with Kara would only quicken the progression of the disease. So, she made sure she saw Kara everyday.

Toward the end, it was harder and harder to hide the flowers from worried blue eyes. But Lena was a Luthor and Luthors always hid their weaknesses well, it just happened to be that Lena’s weakness was sitting right in front of her.

There was no way that she could tell Kara what was happening, how each breath of hers was cut short by vines wrapped around her lungs. Lena couldn’t handle the guilt she would put Kara through if she told her that she was dying because of her. Dying, just because Kara offered to be her friend when no one else would. Lena would laugh at herself if the situation wasn’t so dire.

_________________

Sitting in her office, hidden from the world, coughing up a flower garden, Lena had excepted her fate long ago, back when she first laid eyes on the curious reporter. The work day was almost over, but Lena had no plans of leaving her office until everything was put in order for when the unforgiving roses in her lungs proved to be too much for her fragile body.

It was the first day in weeks that Kara couldn’t meet Lena. Lena had feared that today would be the last day she could hold out against the pain growing in her chest, but now, she could only watch as Supergirl fought off a rogue alien high in the sky. Lena understood that Kara had Supergirl duties and had to cancel their plans together. To be fair, Kara didn’t know how limited Lena’s time left was, and Lena never planned on telling her.

From her office perched at the top of L Corp’s skyscraper, Lena got a perfect view of the battle. The alien terrorizing the National City put up a good fight, dodging Kara’s quick fists and throwing its own hits, some even landing.

Just seeing Kara brought the young Luthor to her knees nowadays. The roses took up too much of her lung capacity, the thorns stabbing her larynx were too much for her to handle. With a hand pressed against the window in front of her to hold herself steady, Lena’s coughs rained bloody petals and clumps of roses onto the floor. Salty tears and glistening blood mingled on the office carpet. After the final rose emerged from its place in her chest, Lena leaned her back against the desk behind her, completely exhausted.

Finally gaining enough energy to train her weary green eyes on the love of her life, Lena watched as Supergirl landed another punch on the alien’s abnormally large head. There she sat, slumped with bloody lips and roses littering the floor, mesmerized by the fighting.

_Maybe this is the end. Is this how I die? Watching Kara, but not close enough for her to be with me as I take my last breath?_ Blood dripped down her chin. _Fine, if this is how it has to be. . ._ Lena closed her tired eyes.

**Author's Note:**

> Hey guys, this is my first work with Hanahaki, hopefully it isn’t too bad! Comments are appreciated.
> 
> Until next time.


End file.
